


i am not your protagonist (i'm not even my own)

by saharadunes



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Don't Worry About It It's Fine, Found Family, Gen, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Light Angst, Major Character Undeath, Sharing a Body
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-26
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:08:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27730528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saharadunes/pseuds/saharadunes
Summary: the little ghost enters a clearing in greenpath.they do not exit.[or: my take on a hornet protagonist au]
Relationships: Hornet & Quirrel (Hollow Knight), Hornet & Shade (Hollow Knight), Hornet & The Knight (Hollow Knight), The Knight & Quirrel (Hollow Knight)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 67





	i am not your protagonist (i'm not even my own)

**Author's Note:**

> hello :] postin this to gauge interest ! i hope you all like this ok? i am VERY happy with this au and have Quite a bit planned ok?

_ Tap-tap-tap.  _ The sound of little footprints on grass. A figure of a not-so-imposing Knight brushes through the foliage.

They've finally caught up to her - _Finally!_   


Greenpath is vast and dangerous, but -  _ Little Ghost, she called them, is that who they are? _ \- Ghost is standing across from Hornet in the clearing.

" _ You will make it no further, _ " she says. 

Ghost draws their nail. A silent challenge.

And thus their intricate dance begins. Jump Dodge. Swipe. Ghost is unfamiliar with the steps. Hornet has practiced her whole life. 

_ Crack. _ Ghost falters; the needle hits. 

They stumble again, again,  _ again - _ Hornet strikes true.

Little Ghost's mask falls to the ground with a thud. 

They wonder, as much as a dying creature can wonder - is Hornet disappointed? Proud of her handiwork? Ghost wouldn't know. They're too busy being, well. Dead.

But that isn’t the right word for it, is it?

A shift. Hornet looks at the fallen mask of her - her opponent.

Hornet stays a moment longer. Just long enough to see the Void seeping out of the mask.

_ Intriguing. _ She unsheathes her needle once more. 

What the Void coalesces into reminds her of something - some _ where _ Hornet does not want to dwell on. Or  _ in _ , for that matter. Anyway. Back to the issue at hand. The off-putting silhouette of the bug floating in front of her.

And then floating  _ closer _ in front of her. And then taking out a spectral nail.

She pierces her needle through the - the  _ thing _ without a second thought.

A second thought she wishes she’d taken when it dissolves into particles in the air, and then rushes  _ into her. _

The experience is… dreadful, to say the least. Hot and cold at the same time, and empty. Hornet does not yell. She thinks she should feel more alarmed by this development. She isn’t feeling much at all, currently. The Void sinks deep,  _ deep - _ and then deep enough that she does not notice the presence of it anymore beyond a slight chill in her shell.

“ _ What, _ ” Hornet says, “was that.”

The ambient silence of Greenpath does not answer her.

* * *

In light of this… Development, Hornet decides to detour through Deepnest. The familiar tunnels and faces of her home would do her good.

Anyway, the Midwife knows much. Perhaps she’d be willing to trade information for a snack? Ever easy to bargain with, the Midwife.

Hornet leaps and zips through the foliage until the acrid smell of the Wastes bites at her antennae. Hornet doesn’t have the mental capacity to haggle with the Mantises, let alone deal with anything else. That’s when she decides to call it for the day’s travel. She’d hate to admit it, but Hornet is just a  _ bit _ shaken up from… earlier events.

She sets out to set up her camp. A little tug of vines there, pull some moss there, and she’s got an adequate hidey-hole to rest in. Tucks in to a Squit she’d snagged earlier with a satisfying  _ crunch. _

Cautiously, she lowers herself to the ground and closes her eyes. (a protector must always be on guard). She falls asleep.

She does not dream.   


* * *

[ - awake - ]

[ - afraid - strange - afraid - ]

[ - where ? - ]

[ - sibling? - no - no - no - ]

[ - not right - ]

[ - out - ]

[ -  _ out _ \- ]

[ -  **_out_ ** \- ]

* * *

When Hornet wakes up, she is not in the same place she fell asleep. She’s sticky from sweat. Her cloak is misaligned, she’s  _ standing upright. _ It’s unsettling, to say the least.

The pulsating corpses of long-dead bugs surround her.

Her own needle is drawn.

She feels cold. (she feels empty).

She moves on. (she’s worried)

The faster she returns, the faster she can find someone who can help. (what  _ happened _ to her?)

**Author's Note:**

> ok thank you. that is all i have for now. my tumblr is [@cutehornet](https://cutehornet.tumblr.com) if you'd like to talk to me there okay? i love you.


End file.
